Punter plunges on Ketchum treble
The bet was taken in cash at a Ladbrokes shop in Oxfordshire at lunchtime, but the high-roller will have to wait until March 2009 to collect his £150,000 if Jonjo O’Neill’s star comes good.
No horse has achieved such a feat in history but Black Jack Ketchum has not been beaten in eight races so far and is already 4-5 to win his first stayers’ crown at Cheltenham. The special bet price was immediately cut to 12-1. The firm’s spokesman David Williams said: “We raised eyebrows when we only offered 14-1, but we’re making no apologies now.
“We reckon the only thing that can stop him is an injury. Everything we’ve seen and heard suggests he’s got a sensational career over hurdles ahead of him. He’s the banker of the meeting and we fully expect him to cost us a fortune over the next few years.”
Already a winner at the Cheltenham Festival last year, Black Jack Ketchum also won on his only run this season at Prestbury Park and is set to return on Saturday for the Byrne Bros Cleeve Hurdle.
“I think he would probably run,” said his rider Tony McCoy.
“I sat on him yesterday and was happy with him. He is in good condition. He’s never really run on really heavy ground before and you would just be worried about him having a very hard race. He’s got his little quirks but is a good traveller and has plenty of speed. His jumping has also been reasonably accurate, touch wood. He’s quite a clever little horse and has only been able to beat what has been put in front of him.
McCoy did repeat O’Neill’s reservations about racing the gelding on very testing ground.
“On good ground you’d probably see a much classier and better horse. I hope conditions are OK at the weekend. He’s not quite a champion yet – he will be a champion if he wins the World Hurdle,” he said.
O’Neill said his stable star “definitely runs” in the big race at the weekend.
“He’s in great form. The ground is going to be heavy I think, but he definitely runs,” he confirmed. “He has plenty of time to get over it before Cheltenham.”
